C-sections may cause breathing problems in preemies

Yale medical researchers have found that C-sections may be causing breathing problems in preemies who are small for their age.

The researcher reviewed eight years of birth certificates and found that babies delivered by a C-section before 34 weeks of pregnancy who were small for gestational age had higher odds of developing respiratory distress syndrome than babies born vaginally.

The study was recently presented at the 32nd Annual Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) Meeting in Dallas, TX.

Preterm birth, which is delivery before 37 weeks of pregnancy, costs the United States more than $26 billion annually, according to the Institute of Medicine.

The researchers reviewed eight years of birth certificate and hospital discharge information for 2,885 preterm babies considered small for gestational age. C-sections are often performed for babies diagnosed with intrauterine growth restriction who are not growing adequately in the womb.